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Standards  of  Placing-Out,  Supervision  and  After-Care 


I.  STANDARDS  OF  PLACING-OUT 

1.  What  constitutes  an  adequate  investigation  of  a  home? 

2.  Must  an  adequate  investigation  include  a  personal  visit  to  the 
home  by  a  personal  representative  of  the  placing-out  agency? 

3.  What  are  the  things  which  such  a  personal  visit,  if  necessary, 
should  include  in  the  way  of  inspection  and  inquiry? 

1,  2  and  3.  An  adequate  investigation  should  be  made  before  a  child 
is  placed  in  any  home.  It  should  include: 

(a)  The  filling  out  by  the  applicant  of  a  blank  to  be  signed 
by  both  husband  and  wife,  application  stating  the  essential  facts 
in  regard  to  the  proposed  home  and  foster  parents; 

(b)  Written  reports  from  the  references  given  by  the  applicant 
and  usually  from  independent  references,  and 

(c)  A  personal  visit  by  a  representative  of  the  placing-out 
agency  to  the  home  of  the  applicant.  A  personal  interview  should 
be  held  with  the  foster  mother  and  with  the  foster  father. 

The  facts  collected  by  the  investigator  should  include  the  sex,  age, 
character,  habits,  health,  temperament  and  occupation  of  each  member  of 
the  family,  general  standards  of  the  home  and  neighborhood,  distance 
to  school  and  to  church,  living  conditions,  such  as  sleeping  arrangements, 
sanitation,  ventilation,  cleanliness  and  comfort;  the  financial  status  of 
the  family,  including  the  approximate  amount  of  the  annual  income  and 
its  sources,  opportunities  for  advancement,  savings,  insurance,  etc.;  the 
family’s  social  connections  and  amusements;  their  moral  and  religious 
standards;  motive  in  taking  a  child  and  their  attitude  toward  discipline 
of  a  child  and  the  possibilities  for  recreation.  At  least  three  references, 
people  who  have  known  the  family  intimately  for  a  period  of  at  least 
three  years,  should  be  visited. 

4.  Should  references  be  required  in  addition  to  those  given  by  the 
applicant? 

Unless  the  information  about  the  home,  as  gained  by  personal  visits 
to  it  and  to  the  references  given  by  the  family,  is  unquestionably  satis¬ 
factory  in  every  respect,  references  known  independently  to  be  reliable 
and  of  good  standing,  in  addition  to  those  given  by  the  applicant,  should 
be  had  when  possible.  Whenever  any  substantial  doubt  is  suggested  in 
the  course  of  an  investigation,  the  matter  should  be  pursued  until  the 
doubt  is  removed  or  the  undesirability  of  the  home  is  established. 

5.  Should  references  be  seen  in  person  in  every  case,  or  is  corre¬ 
spondence  with  the  references  sufficient? 

The  references  given  by  the  applicant,  or  independent  references,  or 
other  persons  of  standing  in  the  community  should  always  be  seen  per¬ 
sonally. 

6.  Assuming  that  an  adequate  system  of  investigation  is  established 
and  thereby  the  true  facts  in  regard  to  the  homes  secured,  what  are  to 
be  considered  minimum  standards  by  which  homes  are  accepted  or  re¬ 
jected,  from  the  point  of  view  of: 


(a)  Income 

A  family  must  have  sufficient  income  to  enable  its  head  to 
provide  adequate  housing  and  living  conditions. 


1 


(b)  Intelligence 

(Including  the  education  of  foster  parents  and  also  the  educational  oppor¬ 
tunities  likely  to  be  offered  to  the  child. ) 

No  definite  amount  of  education  should  be  demanded.  The 
families  should  be  sufficiently  intelligent  to  appreciate  the  value 
of  regular  mental  and  vocational  training,  to  teach  the  child  prac¬ 
tical,  every  day  matters  of  decent  living  and  to  give  the  child  moral 
protection.  Decided  preference  should  be  given  to  families  of 
some  degree  of  natural  refinement. 

(c)  Moral  Standards 

1.  Honesty  in  business  and  personal  relation  is  essential. 

2.  No  home  should  be  accepted  where  any  member  of  the  family 
is  not  living  in  accordance  with  the  usual  American  standards  of 
social  and  personal  morality. 

3.  Profanity  alone  (unless  indulged  in  habitually  and  in  the 
home)  does  not  necessarily  make  a  home  unusable.  If  it  indicates 
vulgarity  and  a  generally  low  moral  standard,  the  home  should  be 
rejected.  A  home  should  be  rejected  in  which  there  is  an  habitual 
use  of  profanity  and  vulgarity. 

(d)  Religious  Training 

Children  should  be  placed  with  individuals  of  the  same  religious 
faith  as  the  parents  of  the  child,  unless  for  compelling  reasons 
this  is  found  to  be  impracticable.  Opportunity  for  religious  train¬ 
ing  should  always  be  required. 

7.  Should  standards  higher  than  the  minimum  be  required  in  regard 
to  homes  for  certain  classes  of  children?  If  so,  what  classes  of  children, 
and  what  standards? 

For  a  child  of  general  marked  promise,  a  home  should  be  selected 
where  more  than  the  minimum  amount  of  required  education  will  be 
given  the  child,  and  where  he  will  be  surrounded  by  refinement  and 
culture.  Children  with  a  talent  of  any  kind  should  be  placed  where  that 
talent  can  best  be  developed.  For  a  child  needing  special  physical  care 
a  home  which  is  especially  equipped  to  meet  the  need  should  be  selected. 
A  difficult  child  requiring  expert  training  needs  a  home  where  the  person 
in  charge  of  the  child  has  had  some  special  training  or  is  temperamentally 
fitted  to  deal  intelligently  and  sympathetically  with  him. 

8.  How  far  should  inquiries  be  pushed  in  regard  to  the  parentage  and 
family  connections  of  children  who  are  to  be  offered  to  foster  parents? 

The  investigation  of  the  family  history  of  a  child  should  include  all 
the  data  which  can  be  obtained  in  regard  to  the  parents,  brothers, 
sisters  and  grandparents  of  the  child.  Honest  and  earnest  effort  should 
be  made  by  personal  visit  and  by  correspondence  to  secure  this  informa¬ 
tion.  There  should  also  be  secured  such  facts  as  may  be  readily  obtain¬ 
able  in  regard  to  aunts,  uncles  and  other  relatives. 

In  regard  to  the  child’s  immediate  family,  i.  e.,  parents,  brothers, 
sisters  and  grandparents,  the  facts  should,  whenever  possible,  include 
the  following:  the  name,  former  and  last  known  address,  with  date; 
whether  living  or  dead;  if  dead,  date  and  cause  of  death;  nationality; 
race;  religion;  occupation;  health;  mentality;  habits;  moral  character; 
prominent  traits;  personal  description;  social  and  moral  standards  of  the 
family,  etc.  Any  indications  of  abnormality  should  be  noted.  The  hous¬ 
ing  and  neighborhood  conditions  and  the  standards  of  home  life  should 
be  recorded,  as  well  as  the  child’s  characteristics  and  personal  history. 
The  sources  of  information  should  be  given  with  full  name  and  address, 


2 


and  if  an  official,  the  title  of  the  person  from  whom  the  information  is 
secured. 

9.  What  must  we  require  of  the  children  in  the  way  of : 

(a)  Health 

A  placing-out  society  should  be  fully  informed  by  a  competent 
physician  concerning  the  physical  condition  of  each  child  who 
is  to  be  placed.  No  child  suffering  from  an  infectious  or  conta¬ 
gious  disease,  which  would  endanger  others,  should  be  placed. 
Children  suffering  from  a  physical  defect,  who  are  not  a  menace 
to  the  community,  may  be  placed  in  specially  chosen  homes. 

( b )  Mentality 

No  child  should  be  deprived  of  an  opportunity  for  family  life 
merely  because  of  the  fact  that  he  is  peculiar,  backward,  retarded 
in  school,  or  mentally  slower  than  the  ordinary  child  of  his  age. 
Border-line  and  doubtful  cases  of  mental  ability  should  be  placed 
in  boarding  homes  rather  than  free  homes,  and  under  special 
supervision,  pending  determination  of  their  mental  status.  Chil¬ 
dren  pronounced  by  competent  authorities  to  be  definitely  feeble¬ 
minded,  should  be  placed  in  suitable  institutions,  except  in  cases 
where  adequate  supervision  is  assured  in  accordance  with  the  laws 
of  the  state  of  Oregon. 

(c)  Character  and  Disposition 

No  child  should  be  deprived  of  a  trial  in  a  family  home  because 
of  an  undesirable  disposition  or  unfortunate  habits,  unless  such 
disposition  and  habits  constitute  a  source  of  actual  danger  to 
himself  or  to  others  in  the  community,  which  can  not  be  overcome 
by  home  life  under  ordinary  conditions.  A  child  whose  conduct 
may  be  an  actual  danger  to  others,  under  the  ordinary  conditions 
of  family  life,  should  either  be  placed  in  a  family  home  selected 
for  its  ability  to  afford  special  supervision,  or  in  a  reformatory 
institution.  Border-line  and  doubtful  cases  should  be  under  special 
supervision,  both  by  the  family  and  by  the  placing-out  agency, 
pending  determination  of  the  necessity  of  commitment. 

( d )  Heredity 

A  child,  both  of  whose  parents  are  feeble-minded,  should  not  be 
placed  in  a  free  family  home  for  adoption  or  otherwise. 

A  child,  one  of  whose  parents  is  epileptic,  insane,  or  of  weak 
or  degenerate  stock,  or  of  doubtful  mentality,  should  not  be  placed 
in  a  free  home  for  adoption,  or  otherwise,  until  such  time  as  he  has 
reached  an  age  at  which  his  mental,  moral  and  physical  status 
can  be  determined.  He  then  should  be  dealt  with  on  the  basis 
of  his  individual  capacity  and  not  on  the  basis  of  his  heredity. 

The  incestuous  child  should  not  be  placed  for  adoption  under  the 
age  of  three  years,  and  then  not  unless  a  reputable  physician  certi¬ 
fies  in  writing  that  such  child  is  mentally  and  physically  normal 
and  will  probably  continue  to  be  so. 

A  child  who  is  physically  deformed  should  not  be  placed  for 
adoption  unless  the  prospective  foster  parents  are  able  and  willing 
to  furnish  medical  and  surgical  aid,  and  further,  that  a  reputable 
physician,  in  writing,  certifies  that  such  child  with  ordinary  care 
and  treatment  can  become  self-supporting  by  the  time  he  reaches 
his  majority. 


3 


10.  What  should  be  required  as  to  legal  custody,  commitment,  sur¬ 
render,  etc.? 

A  child  who  is  to  be  placed  in  a  free  home  with  a  view  of  permanence, 
should  either  have  been — 

(a)  Legally  surrendered  by  the  parents  or  surviving  parent,  or 

(b)  Removed  from  their  custody  as  improper  guardians  by 
an  order  of  the  court,  coming  under  perview  of  Subsections  2  or  3 
of  Section  3,  Chapter  405,  Acts  of  1919. 

11.  When  a  placed-out  child,  not  legally  adopted,  is  returned  to  the 
placing-out  agency,  who  is  responsible  for  its  support? 

The  institution  to  which  it  has  been  legally  committed  until  such  time  * 
as  the  child  becomes  of  legal  age,  or  is  committed  to  some  other  institu¬ 
tion  by  subsequent  order  of  the  court,  or  the  original  order  of  commitment 
has  been  set  aside;  in  which  latter  case  the  parent  or  parents  if  living, 
become  responsible  for  its  maintenance,  or  if  they  are  dead,  have  deserted  « 

or  are  incompetent,  the  county. 

II.  STANDARDS  OF  SUPERVISION 

1.  What  should  supervision  include  in  the  nature  of: 

(a)  Personal  visits  by  responsible  trained  agents.  How  often? 

Personal  visits  by  responsible  trained  agents  should  be  made 

as  a  rule  at  least  twice  a  year.  In  cases  where  there  is  discontent 
on  either  side,  or  doubt  as  to  the  desirability  of  the  home,  they 
should  be  made  as  often  as  necessary. 

(b)  Correspondence  with  the  foster  parents  or  the  child? 

Friendly,  and  in  some  cases,  instructive  correspondence  should 

be  carried  on  with  the  foster  parents.  If  the  child  is  placed  in  a 
home  when  from  six  to  twelve  years  of  age,  friendly  correspondence 
may  be  useful.  In  the  case  of  a  child  placed  when  twelve  years 
of  age  or  older,  correspondence  with  the  child  should  always  be 
maintained. 

(c)  Correspondence  with  school  teachers? 

Correspondence  with  school  teachers  of  children  of  school  age 
is  desirable,  unless  in  exceptionally  good  homes  where  families 
prefer  not  to  have  the  teacher  know  that  the  child  is  not  their 
own.  The  school  report  should  give  a  record  of  the  child’s  formal 
school  progress,  his  attendance  and  general  position  in  the 
community. 

(d)  Visits  by  or  correspondence  with  local  volunteers? 

Visits  by  or  correspondence  with  local  volunteers  is  helpful  in 

special  cases,  but  under  ordinary  circumstances  it  is  best  not  to 
emphasize  the  fact  that  the  child  is  not  in  its  natural  home. 

2.  What  should  be  the  character  of  a  visit  of  supervision? 

Before  visiting  a  child  the  agent  should  review  the  child’s  his¬ 
tory,  and  also  the  original  investigation  of  the  home,  noting  any  * 

points  suggesting  further  inquiry.  When  a  child  is  visited,  the 
agent  should  observe  carefully  the  condition  of  the  child,  his  health, 
his  clothing,  his  attitude  toward  the  foster  parents,  whether  or  not 
the  child  is  happy,  the  amount  of  work  he  does,  his  progress  in 
education,  where  and  with  whom  he  sleeps,  his  opportunities  for 
play  and  possibilities  for  social  life.  The  agent  should  also  note 
the  condition  of  the  home,  particularly  as  to  cleanliness,  order, 
comfort,  the  foster  parents’  attitude  toward  the  child,  their  method 
of  discipline,  their  plans  for  the  child’s  future.  Any  changes  in 


4 


the  home  or  home  life  should  be  noted.  Agents  should  be  instructed 
not  only  to  gather  information,  but  to  give  constructive  advice  to 
the  family  and  child.  Any  child  over  eight  years  of  age  when 
placed  should  be  interviewed  alone.  If  any  question  arises  as  to 
the  home  or  the  child,  some  responsible  person  in  the  community 
familiar  with  conditions  in  the  home  should  be  interviewed. 

3.  How  long  should  such  responsible  supervision  continue  in  regard  to : 

(a)  Children  who  are  not  legally  adopted? 

Supervision  should  be  continued  until  the  children  reach  the  age 
of  twenty-one,  unless  by  reason  of  the  exceptionally  satisfactory 
g  character  of  a  home  and  exceptionally  close  relation  between  foster 

parents  and  the  child  it  becomes  evident  at  an  earlier  date  that 
further  supervision  can  serve  no  useful  purpose.  The  form  and 
purpose  of  supervision  gradually  changes  as  the  child  grows  older, 

^  involving  more  and  more,  as  time  passes,  of  friendly  advice  and 

counsel  to  the  child  in  regard  to  matters  of  education  and  occupa¬ 
tion.  If  the  supervision  is  skilfully  done,  it  gradually  passes  over 
from  control  to  friendly  counsel,  as  it  does  between  parent  and 
child. 

When  a  child  has  been  in  a  home  for  a  period  of  five  years  or 
more,  and  conditions  of  the  home  and  the  development  of  the  child 
have  been  satisfactory,  an  annual  visit  may  be  sufficient,  or  in  a 
few  cases  in  which  conditions  are  similar  to  legal  adoption,  the 
supervision  may  consist  of  correspondence  only. 

Supervision  in  the  case  of  older  children  should  always  include 
a  consideration  of  the  training  of  the  child  in  regard  to  earning 
and  spending  money.  If  the  child  was  placed  in  the  home  when  ten 
or  twelve  years  of  age,  some  compensation  for  his  labor  may 
reasonably  be  suggested  to  the  foster  parents  after  he  reaches  the 
age  of  sixteen  or  seventeen,  provided  he  is  not  attending  school. 
Due  allowance  should  be  made  for  the  period  of  time  the  child  has 
been  in  the  home,  and  the  amount  of  expenditure  the  foster  parents 
have  necessarily  incurred  in  his  behalf. 

As  to  children  placed  out  when  less  than  twelve  years  of  age, 
the  wisdom  of  the  foster  parents  granting  a  small  allowance  of 
spending  money  to  be  used  by  the  child  in  his  discretion,  with 
friendly  advice,  may  well  be  suggested. 

(b)  Children  who  are  legally  adopted? 

Responsible  supervision,  of  course,  stops  when  legal  adoption 
takes  place.  It  is  desirable,  however,  that  placing-out  agencies  . 
should,  when  practicable,  and  when  it  can  be  done  without  danger 
t  of  disturbing  the  relations  between  the  child  and  the  foster  parents 

or  the  community,  secure  information,  from  time  to  time,  as  to  the 
subsequent  careers  of  children  who  are  legally  adopted,  both  for 
the  practical  reason  of  being  able  to  answer  criticisms  as  to  what 
}  finally  becomes  of  such  children,  and  for  the  scientific  reason  of 

being  able  to  form  an  increasingly  wise  judgment  as  time  passes 
as  to  the  operations  of  heredity  and  environment.  Placing-out 
agencies  should  therefore  be  careful  to  place  on  record  all  informa¬ 
tion  which  comes  to  them  in  the  ordinary  course  of  events  concern¬ 
ing  children  who  have  been  legally  adopted,  and  also,  in  so  far  as  it 
is  practicable  for  them  to  do  so,  with  the  consent  and  approval  of 
the  foster  parents,  to  keep  informed  by  correspondence  with  the 
foster  parents  or  others,  as  to  the  welfare  of  the  child  until  it 
reaches  majority,  or  even  subsequently.  Naturally,  very  great 


o 


care  must  be  taken  to  see  that  this  is  not  done  in  such  a  way  as 
to  cause  embarrassment  either  to  the  child  or  the  foster  parents. 

4.  Standards  of  adoption. 

(a)  How  long  a  time  should  elapse  after  placing-out  before  an 
application  for  legal  adoption  will  be  considered? 

At  least  six  months  should  elapse  before  consent  for  legal 
adoption  is  considered.  Some  agencies  require  one  year;  in  some 
instances  a  longer  period  of  time  will  be  found  advisable. 

(b)  What  children,  if  any,  should  not  be  legally  adopted? 

It  is  wise  to  delay  permission  for  legal  adoption  of  children  in 
whose  family  stock,  on  one  or  both  sides,  there  is  clear  evidence  i 
of  mental  defect.  However,  if  the  foster  parents,  having  been 
fully  informed  of  the  child’s  history  and  being  sufficiently  intelli¬ 
gent  to  realize  the  responsibility  they  are  assuming,  still  desire  to 
adopt  the  child  and  are  willing  that  the  placing-out  agency  should  • 
keep  in  sufficiently  close  touch  with  the  child  to  be  able  to  suggest 
and  assist  in  securing  custodial  care  for  the  child,  should  mental 
deficiency  develop,  consent  for  adoption  may  be  given.  Special 
effort  should  be  made  in  such  cases  to  keep  informed  as  to  the 
welfare  of  the  child  during  minority. 

(c)  What  standards  should  be  required  as  to  families  to  which 
consent  for  legal  adoption  will  be  given? 

The  standards  required  as  to  families  to  which  consent  for 
legal  adoption  should  be  given  are  not  materially  different  from 
those  which  should  be  required  in  case  of  the  original  placing-out. 
Consideration  of  permission  for  adoption  should,  however,  include 
careful  inquiry  as  to  whether  subsequent  events  have  fully  con¬ 
firmed  the  judgment  which  approved  the  home  originally.  Consent 
for  adoption  may  appropriately  be  delayed  or  withheld,  if  there 
is  lack  of  sufficient  intelligence  or  income  in  the  family  to  give 
reasonable  assurance  of  the  maintenance  of  high  standards  of 
training  and  education  without  supervision  from  the  placing-out 
agency,  or  if  there  is  any  doubt  as  to  the  sincerity  of  affection  for 
the  child,  or  the  unselfishness  of  the  motives  for  adopting.  The 
fact  that  the  parties  desiring  to  adopt  have  expended  considerable 
sums  in  maintaining  a  child  over  a  period  of  time  should  not  be 
considered  in  determining  the  fitness  of  such  persons  to  become 
foster  parents.  Such  persons  have  no  right  to  detain  a  child  by 
reason  of  having  bestowed  such  care  and  support. 

III.  STANDARDS  OF  AFTER-CARE 

It  is  assumed  that  after  definite,  formal  supervision  is  finished  there 
will  be,  in  some  cases  at  least,  an  opportunity,  and  in  others,  perhaps,  a 
necessity  for  after-care.  How  far  should  this  be  carried  out  by  a  society 
which  has  placed-out  children  in  families  in  the  following  respects : 

(a)  In  seeking  information  as  to  the  subsequent  progress  of 
children  who  have  been  legally  adopted? 

By  consent  of  foster  parents  supervision  after  adoption  is  desir¬ 
able  for  both  scientific  and  practical  purposes,  as  in  this  way  com¬ 
plete  records  of  the  child’s  development  can  be  kept,  and  a  study  of 
these  helps  in  making  it  possible  to  revise  present  methods  of  work 
in  dealing  with  children  who  are  placed  and  those  who  are  to  be 
selected  for  placing. 

(b)  If  this  should  be  done  at  all,  how  should  it  be  done,  how 
often,  and  until  the  child  reaches  what  age? 


6 


It  should  be  done  by  correspondence  and,  when  convenient,  by 
friendly  personal  visits,  but  care  should  be  taken  that  the  fact  of 
the  adoption  is  not  disclosed  nor  emphasized.  Such  visits  every 
second  year  are  sufficient  until  the  child  is  of  age  and  self- 
supporting  or  married.  If  after  adoption  is  completed  there  is  a 
radical  change  in  the  family  life,  such  as  the  death  of  one  of  the 
foster  parents,  or  if  the  child  has  developed  in  any  way  abnormally, 
regular  supervision  should  be  maintained. 

(c)  In  the  case  of  children  who  have  not  been  legally  adopted, 
but  who  are  especially  promising  in  some  line,  how  far  should  the 
society  go  in  securing  opportunities  for  special  education,  training 
or  care  in  those  lines? 

As  much  as  possible  should  be  done  in  securing  opportunities 
for  special  training  for  promising  children,  even  after  formal 
^  supervision  has  stopped. 

(d)  In  the  case  of  children  no  longer  under  definite  formal  su¬ 
pervision,  but  who  have  developed  weaknesses  or  tendencies  to  go 
wrong,  how  far  should  friendly  interest  and  informal  supervision 
continue,  and  to  what  age? 

In  the  case  of  children  who  have  developed  subnormal  or  ab¬ 
normal  tendencies,  formal  supervision  should,  if  possible,  continue 
until  the  child  has  been  committed  to  some  special  institution, 
placed  in  the  care  of  some  responsible  organization,  or  until  some 
private  individual  assumes  the  responsiblity  or  permanent  interest. 

Children  Returned  to  Their  Own  Homes 

1.  What  constitutes  an  adequate  investigation  of  an  application 
from  parents  or  relatives,  for  the  return  of  a  child  from  the  care  of  a 
society  to  their  custody? 

Before  returning  the  child  to  the  custody  of  parents  an  investigation 
should  show  that  they  are  morally  and  financially  able  to  give  the  child 
proper  care,  protection  and  training.  If  a  child  is  to  be  returned  to 
relatives  other  than  parents,  the  investigation  of  the  home  'should  be  as 
thorough  as  that  for  a  free  foster  home. 

2.  Should  such  an  investigation  concern  itself  with  any  other  matters 
than  the  moral  suitability  of  the  parents  or  relatives  to  look  after  the 
children? 

In  considering  the  return  of  a  child  to  parents,  lower  economic  stand¬ 
ards  can  be  accepted  than  those  required  in  a  foster  home.  Poverty  alone' 
should  not,  as  a  rule,  prevent  the  return  of  a  child  to  its  parents. 

3.  If  such  an  investigation  should  take  into  account  the  income,  finan- 
*  cial  circumstances  and  sanitary  condition  of  the  home,  should  a  different 

standard  be  accepted  than  would  be  required  in  placing-out  a  child  in  a 
foster  home? 

A  lower  standard  can  be  accepted  in  case  of  children  returned  to 
4  parents  or  to  older  brothers  or  sisters,  provided  it  is  sufficiently  high  to 
assure  moral  protection  and  physical  welfare. 

4.  After  a  child  has  been  returned  to  his  parents  or  relatives  by  a 
placing-out  society,  what  degree  of  supervision  should  the  society  exercise 
over  the  child? 

(a)  If  the  child  has  been  in  the  care  of  the  society  for  less  than 
six  months? 

When  a  placing-out  agency  investigates  histories  of  children 
carefully  before  placing  them  in  homes,  as  should  invariably  be 
done,  there  would  rarely  be  a  sufficiently  radical  change  in  the 


7 


family  situation  within  six  months  to  warrant  the  return  to  his 
parents  of  a  child  who  had  previously  been  permanently  removed. 
If  the  circumstances  justify  the  return  of  the  child  to  his  parents 
within  six  months,  ordinarily  there  would  be  no  duty  of  subsequent 
supervision.  If  the  child  is  returned  to  other  relatives,  the  super¬ 
vision  should  be  sufficient  for  a  period  of  three  years  to  show 
whether  the  return  was  justifiable,  and  in  doubtful  cases  should  be 
further  continued. 

(b)  If  the  child  has  been  in  the  care  of  the  society  for  longer 
than  six  months  and  less  than  three  years? 

Supervision  should  continue  long  enough  to  assure  the  placing- 
out  agency  that  the  child  is  properly  and  permanently  provided  for. 

(c)  If  the  child  has  been  in  the  care  of  the  society  for  longer 
than  three  years? 

Supervision  should  continue  the  same  as  if  the  child  had  been 
placed  in  a  free  home. 


Records 

What  should  be  regarded  as  the  essential  records  to  be  kept  in  placing- 
out,  supervision  and  after-care  of  children? 

A  complete  record  in  permanent  form  should  include  all  the  facts 
collected  in  connection  with  the  investigation  of  the  family  history  of  the 
child  (see  Standards  of  Placing-out,  8),  with  the  investigation  of  the 
child’s  foster  home  (see  Standards  of  Placing-out,  1  to  7),  and  with 
every  visit  made  and  all  the  correspondence  in  the  supervision,  including 
copies  of  all  letters  to  and  from  the  family  and  the  child,  or  about  them. 
All  formal  documents  such  as  birth  certificates,  vaccination  certificates, 
school  cards,  etc.,  should  be  filed  with  the  child’s  record.  Records  should 
be  kept  in  such  a  form  that  the  information  is  readily  accessible.  Written 
records  should  be  made  of  all  important  arrangements  made  by  the 
placing-out  society  or  by  any  of  its  supervising  agents,  either  with  the 
family  or  with  the  child. 


Trained  Service 

What  degree  of  training  should  be  required  on  the  part  of  persons 
who  are  to  be  employed  as  agents  for  placing-out  or  supervision  of  chil¬ 
dren,  and  what  salaries  will  it  be  necessary  to  pay  to  secure  such 
services? 

Only  people  of  judgment,  intelligence  and  ability  to  get  along  with 
different  types  of  people  are  useful  as  children’s  agents.  A  good  general 
education,  special  training  or  its  equivalent  in  experience  in  social  work, 
teaching,  nursing,  etc.,  should  be  required.  A  college  education  or  training 
in  -schools  for  social  work  is  desirable. 

Confidential  Nature  of  the  Work 

Placing-out  work  is  essentially  confidential  in  its  nature,  and  all  inter¬ 
views  and  records  should  be  so  regarded. 

Respectfully  submitted, 

Mrs.  Henry  L.  Corbett, 

Mrs.  E.  C.  Giltner, 

Dr.  Jas.  W.  Rosenfeld, 

Dr.  Philip  A.  Parsons. 

Wm.  D.  Wheelwright,  Chairman. 

Mrs.  Harriet  H.  Heller,  Secretary. 

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